East Coast Oz - what to do / see

[OhDearMe2]

We have a month in Oz next year for a family wedding. So far we are:

Flying to Melbourne (3-4 days there with friends / getting over jet lag)
Then travelling up by train to Sydney (maybe?) for a few days
Travelling up to Byron bay for the wedding itself, stopping there 4 days
Then fly to Cairns and we have 12 days to explore the East Coast flying back home from Brisbane.

What should we see? We will definitely do a couple of nights in Port Douglas as have a friend there but what else would people recommend for a family?

We are me and DH (I have been to Oz before but was backpacking and 10yrs ago, he hasn't been) DD's who will be 4.5yrs & just 2yrs. It will be end of March / April as going over the Easter hols.

Thanks

Ooh, watching this space as we're planning to go at the same time next year! Sydney for 6 nights then Brisbane to stay with friends for 2 weeks. Can't wait!! Would like to go to Australia Zoo (Steve Irwin's) which is just north of Brisbane. Planning to spend a few nights in both Byron Bay and north of Brisbane up the Sunshine Coast to do some snorkelling, but don't know where yet. Kids are older than yours though at 9, 11 and 13.

I went to Brisbane recently and one of the things we enjoyed most was taking a boat up the river to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. So many koalas and they were so cute!! Plus a nice scenic trip up the river.

Noosa on the Sunshine Coast is gorgeous, a very nice resort.

Port Douglas is gorgeous, very pretty and has that 'tropical Queensland' feel.

My favourite trip is the Daintree river (loads of Crocs, you can do a boat trip, great fun) and then north to Cape Tribulation - where you can stay in the rainforest, and if you're lucky see Cassowaries.

Defo go to cape tribulation. What about a boat trip to the whitsundays? Also I'd go to noosa, magnetic island and Fraser Island. Personally I didn't like Brisbane that much but it is close to some gorgeous places so ild use it as a base but plan a few overnights elsewhere

I would seriously consider flying between Melbourne and Sydney instead of taking the train (the train takes 11.5 hours to arrive into Sydney).

How are you getting to Byron Bay from Sydney; are you driving there
or will you be flying into Coolangatta?.

Australia Zoo is well worth a visit in Sydney as is their aquarium.

I think we have decided we might leave Melbourne out now and just solely concentrate on the East Coast.

Yes, was planning to drive from Sydney to Byron, did this before and was approx 8-9hours (i think?) but with 2 kids we will defo stop over once or twice en rooute to break it up.

All the other suggestions sound great, I didn't do any of those on my last trip with the exception of Noosa so keen to check it all out!

Does anyone know if there are any holiday park things anywhere with kids' clubs? I think my eldest daughter would probably enjoy a few days of that somewhere along the way (and so might we...) realising a month of being away without toys etc will probably take it's toll at times and she will miss her pre-school friends!!

Also agree that you'd be better flying to Sydney.

In Sydney, Taronga zoo is great, as is the aquarium, (and another zoo) in Darling Harbour. A boat trip round the harbour is good.

Off the coast of Brisbane is Tangalooma, an old whale watching station, now turned into a resort, where you can go and feed the dolphins every evening.

Thanks for the tips. After looking into it even more I am now thinking of something like:

Fly in to Brisbane (1 night)
Noosa (2-3 nights)
Byron Bay (4 nights)
Fly to Cairns
Port Douglas (3 nights)
Cape Tribulation ?? (2 nights)

And then I am stuck. The things we aee considering are: Airlie Beach, Whitsundays, Fraser Island.....not sure what else.

Fly out home again from Brisbane?

I am thinking this way we have more time at the top of the East Coast and less internal flights? But is the drive from Cairns - Brisbane boring or long or could we do it if we add in some interesting stops for a couple of nights along the way? We are happy to completely skip Melbourne and Sydney if it means less time travelling but will incorporate it if it makes sense if you know what I mean!

Thanks

PS I realise we are going back on ourselves from noosa to Byron but I know it's a nice place and we have to be in Byron on those dates. Could look at another beach resort though if there's a better option straight from arriving in Brisbane?